Victimology : victimisation and victims' rights / Lorraine Wolhuter, Neil Olley and David Denham.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Wolhuter, Lorraine.

Contributor:

Olley, Neil.

Denham, David, 1944-

Lipman Criminology Library Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Victims of crimes--Europe.

Victims of crimes.

Victims of crimes--Legal status, laws, etc--Europe.

Victims of crimes--Legal status, laws, etc.

Europe.

Physical Description:

xviii, 301 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

London ; New York : Routledge-Cavendish, 2009.

Summary:

How should the needs of victims of crime be met by the criminal justice system? Have the rights of victims been neglected in order to ensure that a defendant is brought to 'justice'? Who are the victims of crime and why are they targeted?

This new book examines the theoretical arguments concerning victimisation before examining who victims actually are and the measures taken by the criminal justice system to enhance their position. Particular attention is paid to the victimisation of women, LGBT persons, minority ethnic persons and the elderly. The book engages in a detailed exposition of the law's response to such victimisation, focusing on the measures adopted in international human rights law, by the Council of Europe, and in English law and policy. It also assesses alternative models of victim participation in criminal proceedings in European jurisdictions such as Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands.

Adopting an interdisciplinary approach which encompasses law, criminology and social policy, the book is ideal for undergraduates taking an option in victimology, race and crime, or gender and crime, whatever their disciplinary background.

Contents:

Key developments in victimology, policy and practice 1

Part I Victimology and victimisation 11

2 Theories of victimology 13

Positivist victimology 14

Conservative criminology and the victims of predatory crime 17

Radical victimology 20

Marxist victimology: Corporate crime and its victims 20

Left realist criminology: a synthesis of theories of crime and victimisation 21

Feminist concerns with the victims of crime 23

Critical victimology 26

Criminology or sociology of harm? 28

3 Victimisation 33

The extent of victimisation 34

National crime victim surveys 34

Local crime surveys 38

Victims of corporate crime 40

Repeat victimisation 43

The impact of victimisation 44

Fear of crime 46

Secondary victimisation 47

4 Women victims - domestic terror and female victimisation 51

Rape and sexual assault 51

The extent of rape and sexual assault 51

The impact on victims 53

Secondary victimisation 55

The rate of attrition 55

The court process 58

Male rape 59

Domestic violence 62

The nature and extent of domestic violence 62

Domestic violence against men: theoretical paradigm or paradox? 63

The impact on victims 65

Minority ethnic women 67

Secondary victimisation 68

Responses of the police and the CPS 68

The court process 72

5 Victims from minority ethnic groups 75

Ethnicity, victimisation and social distribution 75

Extent of 'ordinary' criminal victimisation 75

Fear of crime 77

Racially motivated crime 78

Distribution of crime and impact on victims 79

Impact on victims 82

Victims in rural areas 83

Religiously motivated crime 84

The perpetrators of hate 85

Secondary victimisation 87

State victimisation: police stops and searches of minority ethnic persons 90

6 LGBT and elderly victims 101

LGBT victims 101

Nature, extent and impact of LGBT victimisation 102

Secondary victimisation 106

Elderly victims 107

History of elder victimisation 107

Nature and extent of elder victimisation: senescent victimisation 108

Victimisation in private 109

Victimisation in private institutions 111

The hidden nature of elder victimisation in private: under-reporting levels 113

Victimisation in public 113

Part II Legal responses to victimisation 117

7 The development of a victims' rights discourse 119

European jurisprudence on victims' rights 120

Council of Europe 120

European Court of Human Rights 122

Independent civil right to a fair trial 122

Incorporation of victims' rights/interests into defendant's right to fair trial 123

Positive obligations 125

English law and policy on victims' rights 128

The position prior to the Victims' Code 129

The Victims' Code 130

The role of the courts 131

Judicial review 131

Human rights jurisprudence concerning victims 133

Towards enforceable rights 139

8 Support and assistance 143

Council of Europe instruments 143

'Official' agencies 144

Victim Support 144

Services 145

Advocacy 146

Community and inter-agency work 148

Witness Support 149

Witness Service 149

Witness Care Units 150

'Unofficial' agencies 150

Organisations responding to gender-based violence 151

Organisations responding to racism and Islamophobia 152

Organisations responding to homophobic and transphobic victimisation 153

9 Information, respect and recognition, and protection 155

Council of Europe instruments 155

English law and policy 157

Pre-trial process 157

Police 158

Crown Prosecution Service 158

Court process 159

Witness Care Units 160

Court Service 160

Measures to reduce secondary victimisation in court 161

Release of offenders 169

Effectiveness of measures 170

10 Victim participation 173

Forms of participation 174

Council of Europe instruments 176

Victim participation in the UK 177

Decisions to prosecute 177

Decisions to accept pleas 178

Victim Personal Statements 179

VPS scheme 179

Opposing views on VPS 180

Family Impact Statements and lawyers for families of homicide victims 182

Victim participation in the US 183

Decisions to prosecute 183

Decisions to accept pleas 183

Victim participation in sentencing 184

Victims' lawyers 185

European models of victim participation 186

Party and non-party victims 187

Victim participation in the pre-trial stage 187

Non-party victims' lawyers 189

Victim parties 189

Auxiliary prosecution 189

Adhesion 193

Victim participation and defendants' rights 195

11 Victim compensation 199

European provisions 199

Criminal injuries compensation 201

Origins and development 201

Criminal Injuries Compensation Act 1995 202

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 1996 203

The Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2001 208

Proposals for reform 209

Compensation by the offender 210

Compensation orders 210

Reparation orders 212

Surcharges 213

Recovery orders 213

12 Victims and restorative justice 215

Restorative justice paradigm 215

International and European provisions 218

Restorative justice in England and Wales 220

Government policy 220

Restorative justice initiatives 221

Victim-offender mediation (VOM) 221

RJ conferencing 222

Family Group Conferences (FGCs) 225

Reparation orders 226

Referral orders 227

Effectiveness of restorative justice for victims 228

13 Rights of victims from socially disadvantaged groups 233

Gender-based victimisation 233

Human rights obligations 233

Rape 235

Police and forensic services 235

Crown Prosecution Service 236

Court process 237

Domestic violence 238

Domestic violence as 'real' crime 238

Support and assistance to victims 240

Minority ethnic victims 241

Racially and religiously motivated victimisation 242

Human rights obligations 242

Racially and religiously motivated offences 244

Criminal justice responses 246

Police and multi-agency partnerships 246

Crown Prosecution Service 248

Court process 249

Homophobic and transphobic victimisation 250

Human rights instruments 250

Offences 251

Criminal justice responses 252

Police and multi-agency responses 252

Crown Prosecution Service 253

Elder abuse 254

Human rights dimensions 255

English law and policy 256

American law 256

Enforcement of state duties 258

Anti-discrimination legislation 259

Human Rights Act 1998 261

14 Conclusion - A victims' rights model for the criminal process 265.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [270]-291) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Lipman Criminology Library Fund.

ISBN:

1845680456

9781845680459

0203892690

9780203892695

OCLC:

193907374